In a computing environment, an online community or virtual community is made up of a group of people that primarily interact using online communication media such as Internet-based news, email, Internet-based social networking sites, chat rooms, forum discussions and instant messaging, for example, rather than in person. Often, the online community is used for entertainment, social, professional, educational and/or other purposes. Online communities can supplement relational communication between people who know each other in real life, and are also often a primary form of communication between those who have never met in person, and may prefer to remain anonymous.
Many type of programs, services and software, separately or in combination, are used for online communications, including games, text-based chat rooms and forums that use voice, video text and/or avatars. Recently, online communities utilize a shared online environment that provides for users to interact with each other, such as a virtual world or online game, and/or collaborate with each other, such as online meetings, presentations, and live forum discussions.